Month: January 2013

Can’t is the worst word that’s written or spoken; Doing more harm here than slander and lies; On it is many a strong spirit broken, And with it many a good purpose dies. It springs from the lips of the thoughtless each morning And robs us of courage we need through the day: It rings in our ears like a timely-sent warning And laughs when we falter and fall by the way.

Can’t is the father of feeble endeavor, The parent of terror and half-hearted work; It weakens the efforts of artisans clever, And makes of the toiler an indolent shirk.It poisons the soul of the man with a vision, It stifles in infancy many a plan; It greets honest toiling with open derisionAnd mocks at the hopes and the dreams of a man.

Can’t is a word none should speak without blushing; To utter it should be a symbol of shame; Ambition and courage it daily is crushing;It blights a man’s purpose and shortens his aim. Despise it with all of your hatred of error; Refuse it the lodgment it seeks in your brain; Arm against it as a creature of terror, And all that you dream of you some day shall gain.

Can’t is the word that is foe to ambition, An enemy ambushed to shatter your will; Its prey is forever the man with a missionAnd bows but to courage and patience and skill. Hate it, with hatred that’s deep and undying, For once it is welcomed ’twill break any man; Whatever the goal you are seeking, keep trying And answer this demon by saying: “I can.”

Share this:

Like this:

“So long as there is breath in me, that long I will persist. For now I know one of the greatest principles on success; if I persist long enough I will win.”~ Og Mandino ~

“Difficulties are meant to rouse, not discourage. The human spirit is to grow strong by conflict.”~ William E. Channing ~
“Life’s challenges are not supposed to paralyze you, they’re supposed to help you discover who you are.”~ Bernice Johnson Reagon ~
“Men take only their needs into consideration, never their abilities.”~ Napoleon Bonaparte ~
“We would accomplish many more things if we did not think of them as impossible.”~ C. Malesherbe s~
“If not us, who? If not now, when?”~ Kennedy, John F. ~
“Never be satisfied with what you achieve, because it all pales in comparison with what you are capable of doing in the future.”~ Rabbi Nochem Kaplan ~
“All our dreams can come true – if we have the courage to pursue them.”~ Walt Disney ~
“Dream as if you’ll live forever. Live as if you’ll die tomorrow.”~ James Dean ~
“If you’re going to be thinking, you may as well think big.”~ Donald Trump ~
“Where there’s a will there’s a way.”~ English Proverb ~
“If you really want something, you can figure out how to make it happen.”~ Cher ~
“A determined person will do more with a pen and paper, than a lazy person will accomplish with a personal computer.”~ Catherine Pulsifer ~
“We will either find a way, or make one!”~ Hannibal ~
“Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.”~ Dale Carnegie ~
“You have a very powerful mind that can make anything happen as long as you keep yourself centered.”~ Dr. Wayne Dyer ~
“Desire is the starting point of all achievement, not a hope, not a wish, but a keen pulsating desire which transcends everything.”~ Napoleon Hill ~
“Happiness is a perfume you cannot pour on others without getting a few drops on yourself.”~ Ralph Waldo Emerson ~
“Happiness is the only good. The time to be happy is now. The place to be happy is here. The way to be happy is to make others so.”~ Robert G. Ingersoll ~
“Did you ever see an unhappy horse? Did you ever see bird that had the blues? One reason why birds and horses are not unhappy is because they are not trying to impress other birds and horses.”~ Dale Carnegie ~
“You have succeeded in life when all you really want is only what you really need.”~ Vernon Howard ~
“Real happiness comes from inside. Nobody can give it to you.”~ Sharon Stone ~
“Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.”~ John Quincy Adams ~
“That some achieve great success, is proof to all that others can achieve it as well.”~ Abraham Lincoln ~
“Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.”~ Thomas Edison ~
“The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”~ Winston Churchill ~
“When written in Chinese, the word ‘crisis’ is composed of two characters—one represents danger, and the other represents opportunity.”~ John F. Kennedy ~
“He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else.”~ Benjamin Franklin ~
“It is surmounting difficulties that makes heroes.”~ Louis Kossuth ~
“Ninety-nine percent of failures come from people who have the habit of making excuses.”~ George W. Carver ~
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”~ Mark Twain ~

Share this:

Like this:

Don’t Hope… Decide!While waiting to pick up a friend at the airport in Portland, Oregon, I had one of those life-changing experiences that you hear other people talk about -the kind that sneaks up on you unexpectedly. This one occurred a mere two feet away from me. Straining to locate my friend among the passengers deplaning through the jetway, I noticed a man coming toward me carrying two light bags.He stopped right next to me to greet his family. First he motioned to his youngest son (maybe six years old) as he laid down his bags. They gave each other a long, loving hug. As they separated enough to look in each other’s face, I heard the father say, “It’s so good to see you, son. I missed you so much!” His son smiled somewhat shyly, averted his eyes and replied softly, “Me, too, Dad!”Then the man stood up, gazed in the eyes of his oldest son (maybe nine or ten) and while cupping his son’s face in his hands said, “You’re already quite the young man. I love you very much, Zach!” They too hugged a most loving, tender hug.While this was happening, a baby girl (perhaps one or one-and-a-half) was squirming excitedly in her mother’s arms, never once taking her little eyes off the wonderful sight of her returning father.The man said, “Hi, baby girl!” as he gently took the child from her mother. He quickly kissed her face all over and then held her close to his chest while rocking her from side to side. The little girl instantly relaxed and simply laid her head on his shoulder, motionless in pure contentment.After several moments, he handed his daughter to his oldest son and declared, “I’ve saved the best for last!” and proceeded to give his wife the longest, most passionate kiss I ever remember seeing.He gazed into her eyes for several seconds and then silently mouthed. “I love you so much!” They stared at each other’s eyes, beaming big smiles at one another, while holding both hands. For an instant they reminded me of newlyweds, but I knew by the age of their kids that they couldn’t possibly be.I puzzled about it for a moment then realized how totally engrossed I was in the wonderful display of unconditional love not more than an arm’s length away from me.I suddenly felt uncomfortable, as if I was invading something sacred, but was amazed to hear my own voice nervously ask, “Wow! How long have you two been married?” “Been together fourteen years total, married twelve of those.” he replied, without breaking his gaze from his lovely wife’s face. “Well then, how long have you been away?” I asked the man finally turned and looked at me, still beaming his joyous smile.”Two whole days!”Two days? I was stunned. By the intensity of the greeting, I had assumed he’d been gone for at least several weeks – if not months. I know my expression betrayed me, I said almost offhandedly, hoping to end my intrusion with some semblance of grace (and to get back to searching for my friend), “I hope my marriage is still that passionate after twelve years!”The man suddenly stopped smiling. He looked me straight in the eye, and with forcefulness that burned right into my soul, he told me something that left me a different person. He told me, “Don’t hope, friend… decide!” Then he flashed me his wonderful smile again, shook my hand and said, “God bless!” With that, he and his family turned and strode away together.I was still watching that exceptional man and his special family walk just out of sight when my friend came up to me and asked, “What’cha looking at?” Without hesitating, and with a curious sense of certainty, I replied, “My future!”– Author Unknown